School farm visits support programme for farmers (England and Wales)

Are you new to or want to start school visits on your farm to help educate children about modern British farming? If so, we are excited to offer you the opportunity to take part in a new project to support farmers in delivering high-quality, safe and memorable on-farm experiences to schoolchildren.

The School Farm Visit Support Programme is designed to give farmers the tools, knowledge and confidence to deliver impactful school visits.

This will enable more schoolchildren and young people to better understand and connect with where their food comes from through first-hand on-farm interactive experiences.

The programme is delivered by AHDB, in partnership with LEAF Education, following a successful pilot.

“I've really enjoyed the course and it has given me so much more confidence to start doing school visits. Before, I honestly didn't know where to start... but I've had so many ideas… since doing the course.” – Claire Beaumont, a participant in 2023/24

"I have had a fantastic experience with the School Farm Visits Support Programme… it has given me the opportunity to enhance my knowledge in delivering educational farm visits on our farm at no cost." – Serena Colwill, a participant in 2023/24

What to expect by taking part

We are looking to recruit 30 farmers (who pay either AHDB’s beef, sheep, dairy or pig levy) who are new to or have limited experience hosting school visits on their farms to be involved in the programme.

To support you on your hosting journey, the programme includes a fully funded CEVAS (Countryside Educational Visits Accreditation Scheme) training course (worth £360 plus VAT) and additional one-to-one support from an education specialist tailored to meet your needs.

The programme starts with a CEVAS training course and will require full and active participation.

The course will cover the following topics:

Preparing for visits – including health and safety considerations and how to connect with schools
Linking to the National Curriculum – identifying opportunities for sharing your knowledge of food and farming to deliver learning outcomes linked to the school curriculum
Activity ideas – planning short on-farm activities, talks and visual aids to engage schoolchildren with as part of your farm visit

Following the CEVAS course, you will need to produce a written portfolio based on the activities and discussions covered in the course, showing how you will implement your learnings and knowledge to deliver school visits on your farm.

Your CEVAS course leader will support you in completing your portfolio. Once finalised, your portfolio will be submitted for assessment to become CEVAS accredited.

Using the knowledge from the training, you will be ready to host your first school visit, with tailored support from a LEAF Education Specialist.

As part of the programme, you will be required to deliver a minimum of one additional school visit to your farm within six months of your first.

If you take part, you will need to:

Attend and complete a CEVAS (Countryside Educational Visits Accreditation Scheme) training course (see course dates)
Following the training course, complete and submit a portfolio (estimated to take c.20 hours) for CEVAS accreditation, with support from your CEVAS course leader
Plan and deliver one school farm visit with support from a LEAF Education Specialist
Plan and deliver a minimum of one additional school farm visit within six months of your first
Attend a networking event with experienced CEVAS-accredited host farmers to share best practices and ideas for delivering engaging farm visits (optional)
Get involved with case studies and/or relevant AHDB communications to inform and give feedback to other levy payers and the wider industry about the project, including how their levy is being invested
Provide feedback on your participation in the programme as part of our commitment to ongoing evaluation and improvement

Key timings

Submit the application form to AHDB by 5 August 2024
Attend the CEVAS training course
- Face-to-face starting October 2024
- Online starting January 2025
Submit the portfolio for accreditation within six weeks of completing the CEVAS course
Deliver the first school farm visit following CEVAS accreditation
Deliver the second school farm visit within six months of the first school visit

Benefits for you

In return for your involvement, you will receive the following:

Fully funded CEVAS training and accreditation (worth £360 excluding VAT)
Fully funded tailored support from a LEAF Education Specialist to help you on your journey to hosting impactful farm visits
Support with building relationships with schools interested in the programme
Access to a support network of new and existing host farmers

Schools can apply for a travel bursary to help cover the cost of the coach to your farm for your first visit. Bursaries will be subject to conditions and managed by AHDB.

How to apply

To apply, please complete our application form by midnight on 5 August 2024.

You must specify which CEVAS course(s) you wish to apply for and are available to attend. You can apply for more than one course.

If successful, we will let you know which course you have been accepted for.

Online information and Q&A session

We held an online Q&A session on 16 July 2024 to answer questions about the programme.

Watch the online session

Read the summary

Q: How long is a typical farm visit from a school?

A: The length of a farm visit can vary. A full-day visit typically runs from 9:30am to 2:30pm, accommodating school transport schedules. Shorter visits might last around two hours. There's flexibility to tailor visits to individual farm routines and preferences. Most visits aim to balance educational activities with the farm's operational needs.

Q: When schools visit the farm, do they pay?

A: Charging for farm visits is up to the individual farmer. The CEVAS course explores options where farmers hosting school visits can either provide them for free or paid. Another option is the ED1 payments under Countryside Stewardship, which requires adding them to mid- or higher-tier agreements.

Q: Are travel costs covered by the training course?

A: Yes, reasonable travel costs are covered for the face-to-face course. This includes overnight accommodation for the two back-to-back days.

Q: Are there any resources available for getting involved?

A: Yes, the CEVAS course covers available resources, including our posters, activity sheets, and stickers, as well as resources from LEAF. The Countryside Classroom website supported by AHDB and LEAF also offers free educational resources related to food, farming, and the natural environment. Trainers will bring examples of resources that they use on farm visits.

Q: Is the training applicable to a visit to the school as well?

A: Absolutely. The training covers curriculum links, engaging with children, and presenting information to different age groups, making it applicable to school visits.

Q: Can I deliver a school visit from another farm if I am qualified through this training?

A: Yes, you can. The accreditation is for the individual and not the farm. The training includes health and safety, risk assessments, and insurance requirements. You must ensure all necessary discussions and preparations are in place for the farm due to the visitors.

Q: How do I check insurance coverage for school visits?

A: Contact your insurance provider to confirm that school visits and hosting young people on the farm are explicitly covered in your policy. It's helpful to get this confirmation in writing.

Q: I didn't realise CEVAS is supported under Countryside Stewardship. Can you add it to existing agreements?

A: Yes, it is supported under Countryside Stewardship as AC2. It provides a contribution but doesn't cover the full cost. The AHDB course offers added benefits, including one-to-one support and a bursary for schools to apply for transportation, which isn't available in a pure CEVAS course.

Privacy notice

Information collected as part of the pilot project, including the application process, is covered by a privacy notice. This notice describes how AHDB will use and take care of the personal information we collect on you.

Eligibility

To take part in the project, you must meet the following eligibility criteria.

Please also note that you will be required to have the following facilities on farm to ensure safe visits:

Handwashing – either access to running water or existing handwashing facilities
Toilets – be able to offer access to at least one toilet during the visit (preferably two or more with a class of 30)
Undercover area – have a room/space that is dry and animal-free, suitable for a class to use for lunch and/or during very wet weather, e.g. grain store, lambing barn, old dairy parlour, etc.
Tidy farmyard – to ensure a safe visit

You must:

Be an AHDB beef, sheep, pig or dairy levy payer in England or Wales
Be a farmer, and your farm is your primary business enterprise
Be new and/or have limited experience hosting school visits on your farm
Be farm assured
Not be CEVAS accredited
Comply with relevant health and safety and biosecurity requirements to ensure a safe experience for visitors to your farm. Please note requirements will be covered as part of the CEVAS course and may be sector and/or farm-specific, e.g. ensuring a safe and accessible route around your farm
Have handwashing facilities – either access to running water or existing handwashing facilities
Be able to offer access to at least one toilet during the visit (preferably two or more with a class of 30)
Have a room/space that is dry and animal-free – suitable for a class to use for lunch and/or during very wet weather, e.g. grain store, lambing barn, old dairy parlour, etc.
Have or commit to having suitable insurance that covers the public/school groups visiting your farm
Complete all elements of the project. This includes:
- Completing a CEVAS training course and accompanying portfolio to gain accreditation
- Having a long-term aim of delivering educational visits beyond the scope of this programme
- Providing regular updates and feedback to AHDB on progress throughout the programme
- Participating in AHDB communication activities with AHDB to inform other levy payers and the wider industry about the programme

Selection process

Farmers will be selected to take part in the programme from across three of our sectors: Beef & Lamb, Pork and Dairy (farmers whose primary enterprise is Cereals & Oilseeds are not eligible due to the funding of this current programme).

Ideally, we will select a wide mix of farmers from each of the three sectors, although this may alter depending on interest levels.

Location will also be considered in the context of coverage by the LEAF Education team, as this will be important when delivering the tailored support element of the project.

Importantly, selection will be made based on farmers meeting the eligibility criteria and their written submission on why they wish to take part.

Additional clarification and information may be sought by AHDB to support the decision-making process.

If your application is successful and you have applied for more than one course, we will advise you on which course you have been assigned to.

CEVAS training course dates 2024/25

The CEVAS training course will be held either:

Face-to-face at Harewood Estate, Leeds: 3 x full-day sessions on:
- 1 October 10:30am–4:30pm
- 2 October 9:30am–3:30pm
- 8 October 10:00am–4:00pm
Face-to-face at Whittonditch, Marlborough: 3 x full-day sessions on:
- 29 October 10:30am–4:30pm
- 30 October 9:30am–3:30pm
- 6 November 10:00am–4:00pm)
Online: 6 x 2-hour sessions starting weekly from 22 January to 5 March (excluding 19 February) from 10:00am to 12:00pm on MS Teams

Please note: You must attend all sessions on the course, as they will not be recorded and active participation is required.

For face-to-face courses, overnight accommodation will be provided for the evening of 1 and 29 October, if required. We will also cover reasonable travel expenses.

AHDB